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Monday, July 14, 2008
Back To My Previously Scheduled Life
I am officially back from vacation (I think one of my nerves just splayed open from typing that). As perfection would have it, I backed out of my driveway this morning to go about my business - except something felt all funny and flappy and weird. So I opened my car door and peered back at my rear tire - sure enough if that blowhole wasn't as flat as a boob-in-a-mammogram. Welcome home. I called Tony's office and asked that he be interrupted from his conference call so I could inquire whether it's possible to drive on the metal rim to the nearest gas station without totally ruining something or other; he says "Um, absolutely not", of course I have to ask 5 times if he's sure - indeed he is, dang him.
This is totally my own fault. I've had a rear tire problem for, oh...let's see, 3 months or so? If you've been reading this blog for awhile, you know my abhorrence for ALL things that involve an appointment of ANY kind. So, instead of making an appointment to just fix this stupid tire - I've been adding a bit of air about once a week when I get gas - because that's SO MUCH MORE convenient than getting it fixed, right? Yeeeeah. But see, I forgot to hire a tire sitter during my vacation - so here I am stuck with a flat tire because the poor thing sat unattended for ten days. I might as well have turned my stove-top burners on high and placed my houseplants on them while we were gone too, right? I know.
Considering the aftermath, maybe I'm not an easy person to travel with - but I do love to travel. Or rather, I love the destination - but I'm not the best at FLYING, per se. Do you know what I mean? Where sometimes your chemistry on the given day is just NOT set up for flying? There are flying-days when I want to crawl right out of my skin, out of my organs, right out of my wretched soul and blast out into orbit and into the arms of the global warming - rather than into the wings of that damn waiting plane of prison. I think for wonky folks like us, planes need anti-gravity rooms so the flight attendants can just throw us lunatics in there and we can literally bounce off the walls until we're at the gate, it'd be perfect.
At the same time, I think the lack of oxygen can add to the mentaltainment - adding to the loopiness and chattiness and silly monotony...
Us, Overheard On The Airplane:
T: I think you've reached the plane's allowed word limit.
A: OH! Ohmahgad, think I'm goin' to guffaw here.
T: I think you should nap.
A: I've been trying to.
T: Try harder.
A: I've had my head on your shoulder for 40 minutes, eyes closed! I can't sleep.
T: You so need to nap before me and our neighbors permanently gang-nap you.
A: Oh. OH.
A: I am so bored, I am out of my skull-mind-brain bored.
A: I hate flying, I'm not a good flyer. I feel crowded inside and out. I need space. I want to sprawl.
A: I'm done with the magazines, don't want to read, this crossword makes me mad. Sudoku can suck it!
A: I'm going to run down the aisle and scream FIRE!
T: [stares blankly]
A: I'm gonna go crazy, I really can't stand flying one more minute.
T: Okay, but you want to travel everywhere in the world?
A: Well yeah. But on my OWN plane.
T: Your own plane?
A: Well, duh! Why do you think I'm putting in my 3-days-a-week at work?
T: [calls flight attendant for new seat]
I just don't do well all packed in tight and taut. On top of that, you have the poor screaming babies and their even more miserable parents and the nearby travelers who look at them accusingly as if they programmed the child to scream during these chosen moments. Tony is always reading calmly and I'm always "Are you reading? Is the book good? Is it really good? What do you want to talk about? Are you thirsty, because I'm thirsty? I think someone is FARTING continuously!" - I mean, it really is an excess of humanity in one place - a recipe for excess irritability and clock watching and someone continuously farting nearby.
I think I have a solution. You see, we take our dogs with us in the cabin and they get a little tranquilizer to help them through the flight. Well, HELLO humans - why are the canines the only species benefiting from this extremely smart coping mechanism? Listen, the airlines are looking for things to charge us for, why not DRUGS that make us better passengers? Let's get this option on the beverage cart! I know, right? Can you see it?
Flight attendant: "A Diet Coke? You betcha. What would you like with that? Quaalude? Valium? Ambien? Xanax? Yes, I'll hold the ice. A pillow? Down or tempurpedic?"
Sleepy, calm passengers who are paying more money to the airlines? Oh, win-win. Sign me up. Until I get that private jet through working 3-days-a-week, I'd be all for this proposed program. Diet Coke, Valium, hold the ice, down pillow - THANKS. [and a nose plug? should we add that too?]
So, since I was stranded at home today with my post-vacation musings and my flat tire - I decided to make us a little treat for tonight. I suppose it's a little last hurrah toward our vacation...
Chocolate Mousse
I must admit, I had major preconceptions about mousse. I just always felt it was chocolate pudding in high heels. Nothing special, nothing to get the least bit excited about, certainly nothing to blow your hair back. Wow, was I WRONG. Chocolate Mousse, my apologies for the pre-judgment. This isn't a classic mousse as it doesn't contain eggs, which may thus make it more amenable for children for those of you who don't like to use raw eggs. It's super chocolaty and rich and incredible - and FAR, far beyond what we were expecting in terms of deliciousness. Super easy to make, elegant, and decadent. LOVED IT. This dessert is totally worthy of heels - you could serve this baby in heels. And nothing else, for that matter.
2 c. heavy whipping cream
8 oz. semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 tsp. vanilla
pinch of salt
Bring 1/2 c. of the cream just to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium heat, then remove pan from heat. Add chocolate and whisk until smooth. Whisk in vanilla and salt; transfer to medium bowl and allow to cool to room temperature.
Whip the remaining cream with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until the beaters begin to leave trails in the cream. Add the chocolate in 3 separate batches, beating on low speed just until well blended; the mixture might look curdled after adding the first batch, but it will become creamy.
Transfer mixture to one large serving bowl or 4 stemmed glasses. Refrigerate and cover for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 days. Serve with crumbled meringue, whipped cream, or grated dark chocolate. ENJOY!
29 comments:
- Lisa said...
Hi Ann - welcome back, and my condolences on the end of your vacation. I hear you on the flying thing! Love the mousse - mine has egg whites in it, and just a splash of rum, but yours is a masterpiece of simplicity and deliciousness!
- July 14, 2008 at 2:56 PM
- NV said...
FINALLY! Welcome home. sorry it got off to such a funky start -- but at least you got to stay home. :-) You HAD to do chocolate mousse. One of my faves. Damn, I wish I really cooked.
- July 14, 2008 at 3:04 PM
- dharmamama said...
I thought that's what airport bars were for?
- July 14, 2008 at 3:18 PM
- Clumbsy Cookie said...
Welcome back! Finally! I had almost forgotten abou you... No just kidding!
I get very cranky at planes too, but what really gets on my nerves are the cues to get on the plane, as if the seats aren't allready marked! Why oh why do they insist in forming a line 30m before they open the doors? I just had to let this off my chest, thank you. I'll grab a mousee, I think I need it now.
- July 14, 2008 at 4:06 PM
- Sugar Jones said...
YAY! She's back! And with Chocolate Mousse, no less!
My husband is a private pilot. Sometimes we borrow little planes for our trips. I have to fly commercial this week to get up to BlogHer. And then I have to go to a public terminal... with no little golf cart guy driving us to our rental... this is going to be hard... but I think I'll manage.
Thanks for the mousse recipes. I'll have to try that so that my muffin top can be extra squishy for BlogHer.
- July 14, 2008 at 4:10 PM
- The Cheap Chick said...
Mmmmmmmmmmm.... mousse.
Welcome home! Sorry the plane part of the trip was icky. I recommend strong drink and Benedryl. Knocks me out every time. Could also be killing me, but SACRIFICES MUST BE MADE.
- July 14, 2008 at 5:06 PM
I detest planes, hate flying, am always looking at my watch. I can't read on a plane, I can't sleep. So, I completely sympathize. I'm all for the proposed program: give me the drugs. Love the pictures of that mousse, wow!
- July 14, 2008 at 5:53 PM
I want that mousse. How sucky to get a flat tire on the very day of your return to reality. How snide is that of the world? I mean I know it's kinda your fault and all, but still. Give a girl a break.
I think you should write the airlines with the new proposal. Most excellent.
- July 14, 2008 at 6:16 PM
We've all been waiting for you to get back, Ann, and you have not disappointed us! I think drugs on planes is an absolutely smashing idea! Could be your new career: Airline Pharmacist. Or mousse-maker in the sky (with diamonds, of course), cuz that mousse is lookin' good, too. Well, whatever flies. (Oooo-was that bad or what? Don't answer that. I need to take a Xanex and go to bed.)
- July 14, 2008 at 7:51 PM
First of all, what about the phrase, "give me a double vodka" are you not able to pronounce? Or, perhaps, "kind doctor, I don't fly well". Get yourself some help, sweetie. It doesn't have to be that hard!
- July 14, 2008 at 8:25 PM
- Jennifer S said...
Welcome back! I missed you!
I think Standing Still is on to something there. Tranquilizers sound like a really good idea, so that you can enjoy traveling, or at least bear it.
That chocolate mousse looks so yummy.
- July 15, 2008 at 1:07 AM
- Nic said...
Welcome home!
I get so bored flying too, how long was the flight?
The mousse looks divine, I like mine eggless too!
- July 15, 2008 at 2:05 AM
- hungryandfrozen said...
Woohoo, you're back and you brought chocolate! Loved the dialogue transcripts, I always seem to have bizarre conversations on aeroplanes too...I like the idea of a nice quaalude with my hot towel and prepackaged meal.
- July 15, 2008 at 4:56 AM
- grace said...
i agree that offering drugs is a brilliant way to may airplane travel more enjoyable. i always get antsy and uncomfortable and annoyed, no matter how long the flight.
i'm sorry about your vehicle woes, but i'm not sorry about that mousse. fantastic. :)
- July 15, 2008 at 7:05 AM
Allright, I am always, always seated by the person who is continuously farting throughout the entire plane ride. I am beginning to wonder if they pump that smell through the air system. I'll take a valium, ginger ale, with ice, temperpedic, nose plug.
- July 15, 2008 at 1:40 PM
- Ann said...
Lisa - Thanks, I now need a vacation after the vacation, you know?
NV - The mousse really IS DE-lish - and I'm tellin' ya, super easy. Get Carol on the action, girl!
Dharmamama - totally, for most people. But, being such an alcohol pansy, I just don't do well w/ booze - I get a hangover about 2 hours later. So, drugs it is...
Clumbsy Cookie - Exactly! On the flight back - they actually had TWO extra "hallways" to coral us through, both to the tune of about 400 degrees. Nice.
Sugar - Oh, how FUN with the hubby, bonus! Glorious. See? That's what I'm talkin' about people. ALL the way.
Cheap Chick - totally with you. Maybe if I have ONE drink and the Bene, it'll do the trick - or at least it'd shut my piehole.
Sarah B. - if I start a petition, I shall reserve the top spot for your siggie.
Meagan - I know, I mean I *get* that I set myself up for that flat - but still, I just still felt totally put off by it, oddly.
Firefly - Love it. "Mousse Maker In The Sky With Diamonds" - and I could dance in the aisle and sing Beatles songs and everything! Could we ask for more? I think NOT.
Standing Still - Yeah, no double vodka here - unless I want a FOURPLE hangover about 2 hours later - booze does that to me. So, drugs would be my deal. Got any?
Jennifer H - Yeah, I think SS has it right, as usual, damn her.
Nicisme - Get this: the flight was only about 3 hours (hangs head in shame). When I fly to Europe, I nearly lose my mind - as if you hadn't already made that leap of knowledge.
Laura - so glad you can see it - quaalude, warm towel, food - boom, that's all.
Grace - plus, they could charge 5-10 bucks a pill and you can be sure I'd pay it - they'd make scads of money and everyone would be happy!
Marissa - I wonder the same thing. I really do. If not, WHY aren't they HOLDING it? GAWD.
- July 15, 2008 at 3:10 PM
- MamaGeek @ Works For Us said...
OH. Wow. I'm in love with that recipe and those pictures are just as delicious!!!
- July 15, 2008 at 4:52 PM
- Momisodes said...
Welcome back! So sorry to hear about the tire. I'd rather get a filling at the dentist than deal with car issues.
LOVE that recipe, and those pics have my mouth watering *drool*
- July 15, 2008 at 8:18 PM
- Gigi said...
Welcome back! Ah, I loved your idea of offering drugs on flights! Seriously, 2 xanex are way cheaper then 5 little bottles of Jack right? Great post Ann!
- July 15, 2008 at 9:46 PM
my dear ann, welcome back from vacation! although it seems like welcoming u ain't so great what with the busted tire!
i travel a lot between countries and yes i do hate that tight feeling. i mean, geez, what if i was fat as hell? and i don't know why, but by some odd power of sorts, every time i fly, there is surely to be a child, toddler or baby around me. and much as i sound like an uncaring cold bitch, i don't particularly like them. and it makes me very queasy when they start crying. mostly this is about 2 or 3 seats away from me.
i totally understand what you've gone through! but i must say, a very strong gin and ton usually sorts me out. and if it doesn't, bloody have another!
p/s serve this choc mousse on the plane and i swear i'll never complain abt plane rides anymore. the mousses they serve on the planes are downright pathetic! xxx
- July 15, 2008 at 10:44 PM
As I face leaving this morning for the airport to fly to L.A. from Atlanta, I simply must tell you that the very same thoughts run through my mind. I am actually a very good flier outwardly -- inwardly a little part of me dies each time I set foot on a plane. After surrendering my belt, keys, purse, luggage, and dignity like a prisoner, I shuffle to my flights as a broken woman. I'm so weak by the time I make it to my seat (that inevitably is occupied by someone else who couldn't figure out that silly seating chart thingy. And then it happens: my seatmate begins to speak and does not shut up for the remainder of the flight. It boggles the mind. Why not just sit there secretly stewing with irrational rage against babies and fat people? The rest of us do.
- July 16, 2008 at 1:23 AM
- Antonio Tahhan said...
omg, you're a hoot! i just found your blog and found your post to be hilarious (in a very sympathetic way, of course). my strategy for flying: i pull an all-nighter the day before and my body shuts down from sleep deprivation the second the plane takes off... it's a little intense, but it'll have to do until they implement your great idea : )
- July 16, 2008 at 7:43 AM
Oh you have me laughing hysterically!
- July 16, 2008 at 8:02 AM
I have the worst tire Karma on the planet.
And I, too, am prone to procrastination when it comes to setting up an appointment for anything.
Earlier this year, I had similar tire problems with my rear driver's side tire. For quite some time I was taken to filling it up with air when it got too low.
Then, not thinking, we went on a little vacation and left the car, at the airport...in the middle of winter (we actually have winter where I come from, not sure about you) with a leaky tire.
Two in the morning rolls around, and we finally reach our car after a week of disneyland which was topped off with my son vomiting all over me in the shuttle back to the hotel, and I notice that my car has not one, but two flat tires.
I'm still feeling the rage...
Welcome back.
- July 16, 2008 at 9:20 AM
- Ann said...
Mamageek - aw thanks! The mousse really is great, and...easy!
Sandy C. - I'm the same way - I feel like if I go to the car place, they'll take one look at me and be all "yeah, we're gonna have to go ahead and replace the entire CAR" just to take advantage of me.
Gigi - yep, skip the booze and the hangover - gimme the pills and the quick recovery - YES MA'AM!
Diva - god I ADORE your straight-shooting, just love it. We're just meant to fly like sardines in the sky, period - unless drunk or drugged, or skilled Buddhists. I just firmly believe it.
Lacy - Oh Lacy just go ahead and hit the BULLSEYE, why don't you? Exactly!
Antonio - LOVE your profile pic, absolutely love it! Thanks for stopping by. :)
Kristen - Aw thanks for stoppin'!
Morton - Wow, same experience, different season. It's like we shoot ourselves in the foot - brilliant isn't it? But hey, we saved ourselves an APPOINTMENT right? Brilliant.
- July 16, 2008 at 9:41 AM
We'd like to invite you to participate in our July berry recipe contest. All competitors will be placed on our blogroll, and the winner will receive a fun prize! Please email me, email@example.com, if you're interested. Feel free to check out our blog for more details. (Click on my name in the message header link to visit our blog. :)
- July 17, 2008 at 11:33 AM
- Manager Mom said...
Don't wait for the airlines! You need to import your own Xanax. I have a friend who has a very elaborate pre-flight routine which involves sleep deprivation, followed by Restoril and a gin & tonic on the plane. This usually allows her to pass out for up to a 5 hour flight.
But we're glad to have you back.
- July 17, 2008 at 4:13 PM
I made this! And we loved it! While making it, like you, I was thinking how it seemed like I was making pudding and I was thinking it might be blah. I let it chill. We had it after dinner and WOW WOW WOW, it's incredible! Rich and thick, yet light and creamy.
So, thanks for not only entertaining me daily, but also for sharing such a great recipe. Wonderful!
- July 17, 2008 at 8:10 PM
The conversations you have with your husband are hilarious! hehe. I'm all for sleeping pills on long flights, either that or a bottle of vodka! hmmm. :-)
Your chocolate mousse looks divine. I love your pictures too!
- July 17, 2008 at 8:54 PM


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July 23, 2014
Book Review - Strange Shores by Arnaldur Indridason
Police Detective Erlendur is on leave and returns to the area of his childhood in the countryside in the east of Iceland. Cold and harsh, the landscape has been the scene of his greatest childhood trauma – losing his 8 year old brother in an unexpected blizzard. Erlendur seeks answers not only to his own story but also to a mystery of a missing woman, lost in the snow many years before. Mystery novels take many shapes and this is far from a straight forward police procedural. The landscape and the weather are part of the story. Age and memory haunt many characters and the cold is visceral. Did the mystery of his brother's loss influence his becoming a policeman? Why can't he leave a mystery alone? Why do we need answers? Indridason remains one of my favourite authors. Wendy
Posted by Camden Council Library Service at Wednesday, July 23, 2014
Labels: Fiction, Mystery, Scandinavian
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

subset: commoncrawl


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About Us
Mediterra was born in 2002 during the reorganization of the Chios Mastiha Growers Association, with its primary goal being to create and develop the mastihashop brand as well as expand the store concept. The Chios Mastiha Growers are the majority owners of Mediterra. Together, they desire to further grow their market presence internationally by promoting and educating the world about Chios Mastiha and its many uses and unique characteristics through Mastiha products produced in Chios, and elsewhere in Greece and abroad.
mastihashops will be the Chios Mastiha embassies throughout the world... Chios Mastiha will be at the epicentre of the shops which will create a meeting place that will host products and flavors from many civilizations of the Eastern Meditteranean... mastihashop will highlight and promote the Mediterranean lifestyle focused on health, well-being, and natural products stemming back centuries...
Taking into account the fact that natural Chíos Mastiha is a product or proposal that goes hand in hand with modern perceptions on well being, the increased concern surrounding healthy diet and environmental issues, and political and societal demand for fair-trade products, mastihashops aspire to become a modern vehicle to promote these ideas for all like-minded people in the world.
Mediterra is currently developing its commercial strength and production capabilites, retail and wholesale sales , and is tackling educating the consumer on healthy habits and the many benefits of Chios Mastiha.
The company today directs the daily operation of mastihashops and has also undertaken:
-the production and development of Chios Mastiha products
-the distribution of Chíos Mastiha in Greece
-the external, development and distribution to pharmacies of mastihashoptherapy line
-development and distribution of the cultura mediterra natural food line
mastihashop USA (MSHOP LLC)
Owners of the first ever U.S. mastihashop, sisters Artemis and Kalliopi Kohas, were born to Greek immigrant parents in Allentown, PA. Their father, Kosta, was one of the many immigrants that sought the ˇAmerican Dream˘ and one of the few who actually achieved it. With the same entrepreneurial spirit as their father, the sisters left their previous occupations to work on the mastihashop project, which is not just a business, but a personal and deep-rooted part of their everyday life. With both parents originating from the island of Chios, Kalliopi and Artemis spent every summer of their lives on the island, surrounded by mastiha. The Kohas sisters come from a lineage of mastiha growers and are passionate about the product and its healing qualities. And so, they feel it˘s their ancestral calling to be the ambassadors of mastiha in the U.S.
The Kohas sisters spent years promoting mastiha before opening mastihashop in the U.S. Their collaboration with Mediterra S.A., the daughter company of the Chios Mastiha Growers Association and the entity that created the "mastihashops", began in 2004 with discussions of a store in New York. This inevitably led to their involvement in many other aspects of the venture. Artemis and Kalliopi participated in events sponsored by the Chios Mastiha Growers Association with the EU at the French Culinary Institute in New York and the Greek Embassy in Washington, D.C. In addition, the sisters have attended Fancy Food Shows representing Chios Mastiha and distributed mastiha to New York restaurants through the Kerasma program. In 2006, the Kohas sisters became partners in the mastihashop in Mykonos and in December 2007 were ecstatic to open the doors to the very first U.S. mastihashop located in Manhattan. For Kalliopi and Artemis, teaching people about mastiha and opening mastihashop is their way of continuing their ancestral legacy and their father˘s American Dream.
MSHOP LLC is currently selling products wholesale to retail stores. If you are interested in carrying our products, please contact Artemis at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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RWL Magpul x JP Rifles M4
It is a very user friendly platform featuring all the familiar features on a common Armalite whilst having all the improvements made to it. Unique style and feel to this rifle and provides accurate shots down range.
Smooth gearbox and upgrade capabilities within the gearbox allows room for future upgrades or customization. Definitely what you should look into if you are looking for a high end AEG.
Previously, the Noveske RWL was sold out in such a short period of time and with the feedbacks from that batch of RWL rifles, we introduce to you the second lineup of RWL rifles, this time: the Magpul x JP rifle. This Redwolf Licensed AEG is fully licensed by the respectful companies, housing a stunning combination of Magpul and JP Rifles parts!
The RWL Magpul JP Rifles M4 features a Magpul PTS Billet receiver set, Magpul PTS MOE grip and CTR stock, an Magpul PTS MBUS sight, and a Magpul 120rds PMag. A complete set of a JP Rifles Mid-Size 9.8inch Handguard w/ 1 Barrel Length. These RWL rifles are really designed to go all the way when it comes to using premium parts.
Internals of the RWL Magpul x JP Rifles M4 includes a Full set G&P 8mm Gearbox with barrel capable of producing up to 320fps, and a G&P M16 Metal Hop-up Unit. Sure, it is only firing at 320fps, but this combination is designed for smoothness with efficiency in mind. So if you were to put a more powerful spring behind that piston, it will still manage to cycle the piston due to the G&P M120 motor giving all that power behind those gears.
Initial impressions.
This RWL rifle comes in a distinctive setting, using solely Magpul parts on the receiver and stock and JP Rifle system's front end and outer barrel, it already stands out to be something different. With the uninterrupted top picatinny rail running the full length from the receiver top to the front sight of the rifle, this also adds a nice touch to the workmanship on this combination.
This AEG has the following parts fitted:
The 8mm gearbox also includes the following on top of the standard parts:
The Magpul parts installed definitely deserves a special attention since the receiver has stamped trademarks on both sides of the magwell area, PTS markings on the MBUS sights, MOE markings on the grip as well as CTR markings on the stock. All the markings, textures and quality that is expected from Magpul are on this RWL rifle. Furthermore, with the JP Rifle systems' front end kit continues to provide this smooth feel and look all the way down the gun. It also features two additional RIS rails on the left and right side for you to mount your accessories on. PEQ, Lasers, Tac-lights, whatever you want. You've already got a limited edition AEG, why hold back to customize it more to your own preferred configuration?
On to the gun itself.
If you're looking for an Armalite rifle with a difference but want to look like you mean business, this RWL sure is a starting point. With the recent Magpul training videos and various other organizations that provided these type of tutorial videos and training, one can only sense that these style of rifles and configurations have a much deeper meaning than just to look different or cool. From having the MOE pistol grip that is comfortable to hold with and without gloves, the integrated trigger guard that allows the use of thicker gloves when operating, the lightweight, sturdy and practical CTS stock. This already adds enough custom and high end elements on the receiver side already. To add to this beautiful concoction of parts, the JP rifle system's front set is not to be underestimated either! From their long track record of making rifles and rifle parts, their rifles being renowned in IPSC, USPSA and tactical/military shooting competitions, their quality, durability and reliability speaks for itself! The handguard adaptor also features a patented design by JP Rifles where they have redesigned the delta ring assembly into something much sturdier and so rigid it can afford to take more abuse than ever!
Incorporating the steel barrel along with the sturdy aluminium front set and receiver from Magpul and JP Rifles, not only does this scream quality and high end to you but looking at the internal parts list above, the performance will not be shy either. Having this RWL rifle configured in this setting with a rear MBUS sight, an uninterrupted top rail along the top of the gun, this allows the user to use any optics they wish and easily co-witness their scope's aim in a short moment by disengaging the lock on the MBUS to allow them to double check their scope's zero or in the unlikely case the optic has failed on you, the MBUS is here to deliver. The magwell also has been flared and slightly enlarged without sacrificing the profile of the gun for that easier reload.
The finish of this gun is also something worth extra attention to. The trademarks and logos seen around the gun, the matte black finish across the whole gun, this really has to be seen with your own eyes to appreciate this RWL rifle, these pictures do not do this rifle any justice. With fully licensed Magpul markings as well as a unique stamped serial number on the right side of the receiver, you're sure to get a totally unique rifle if you're one of the lucky 100 to have your hands on one of these.
The RWL Magpul x JP Rifles M4, chronos out of the box at 320fps but with the steel gears, M120 motor and the G&P metal hopup unit working together, using a higher powered spring will not affect its air seal at all and this setup has been tested to withstand a PDI 170% spring without any troubles. For the remainder of this review, everything will be tested under its stock setup where it fires at 320fps using KSC .20g BBs. With this setup intended to use the short stick type lipo battery, this allows the AEG to keep its weight down and with the weight distribution balanced the way it should be without sacrificing performance. Using a lipo battery with a higher rating or discharge rate (11.1v or 15/20C) may restrict your stock from being retracted fully but the rate of fire will be increased substantially.
Thanks to its 8mm gearbox design with bearing bushings, even at stock setup, it cannot be emphasized enough that the gearbox runs smooth and we all know smoothness means efficiency and speed when it comes to gearboxes. So not only are you getting a great looker in an AEG, a smooth performing gearbox also allows you to get your money's worth even on your battery's charge!
A grouping test has also been done on this rifle using KSC perfect .20g ammo at 20metres, prone and using a gun rest. The groupings were taken twice with 10shots each session, one in semi-automatic and the second with it firing in full auto just to see the difference in muzzle control. Little as it may be seeing this is an AEG but this has been compared with a TM M4 firing at 315fps using the same length barrel, purely to compare the accuracy differences between the two guns.
The RWL Magpul x JP Rifles M4, offers a very user friendly platform featuring all the familiar features on a common Armalite whilst having all the improvements made to it . Using fully licensed and premium Magpul and JP rifle systems' parts for the external components, this gun offers a really unique, special yet practical rifle to skirmish with as well as providing the user the ability to replicate any civcon style PSD loadout. The internals are all from G&P so that the parts are all dependable as well as having the upgrade/aftermarket parts being compatible with this AEG as well. Even though the RWL Magpul x JP Rifles M4 does not come already configured in high speed or high power or range setup, the upgrading potential for this RWL is endless considering pretty much anything on this AEG can be customized.
That is of course, you are looking to have something more than what it already delivers. With its current performance level, looks and durability, it already hits above the average skirmishing standards in terms of how it will hold up in its own class. Obviously, firing at 320fps out of the box you'll be silly to take this to a higher powered game and expect to have the upper hand even with the 1½ inch grouping this is able to produce at 20 meters. So if you're looking to have a beautiful AEG, smooth and durable gearbox as well as room for future customization as well as the functionality, the RWL Magpul x JP Rifles M4 is definitely one of the rifles you should look at to see if this is just the gun for you.


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German-language news sites and blogs are reporting that file locker site Skyload.net has been shut down and its operators arrested.
According to Germany's Netzwelt ('Networld'), the Dresden Attorney General's office conducted the shutdown in response to a complaint led by that country's copyright agency, GVU.
Skyload.net is accused of having uploaded more than 10,000 movies to Kino.to under a paid affiliate program.
According to Telekom-Presse, the arrest and shutdown took place last week (bad Google translation here). That post also compares Skyload.net and Kino.to as having a model similar to the more famous file-locker shutdown, Megaupload.
TorrentFreak reports that the German authorities have arrested "Maik P", probably Maik Pätzold, owner of the Skyload.net domain; and "Marcel E", presumably Marcel Edler, who is listed with Pätzold as a contact for Skyload.net's hosting provider, Virtuell-host.de (which is also currently offline).
The authorities say that after Kino.to was shut down, Skyload.net continued its uploading activities, switching to alternative sites like KinoX.to. ®


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The Securities and Exchange Commission's Division of Investment Management recently issued two guidance updates — one clarifying whether a person or company that temporarily serves a fund "at cost" or for no compensation is an investment advisor under the Company Act, and the other allowing closed-end fund sponsors to use electronic media to distribute shareholder data.
The first notice clarifies that firms that provide investment management services to registered funds are investment advisors under the Investment Company Act even if such firms are not paid.
The notice says that firms cannot claim exclusion from the Investment Company Act by declining to receive compensation. "Where an advisory contract is assigned (e.g. acquisition), firms must comply with Rule 15a-4 to manage funds pending shareholder approval," it says. "Rule 15a-4 has several additional conditions including board approval and a 150-day limit," it states.
The notice clarifies that the language in the definition of investment advisor requiring compensation only applies to firms that are in the business of providing such services at cost to all clients.
Cipperman Compliance Services says the notice "does not break new legal ground, so we are assuming that the [SEC] staff has seen several firms try to avoid Rule 15a-4's requirements." Also, "this position may apply analogously to investment advisors trying to avoid Advisers Act registration on the theory that they don't receive compensation."
The second update allows closed-end fund sponsors to use electronic media to deliver the 19a-1 Notice describing distributions from sources other than the fund's profits. To use electronic delivery (email), the shareholder must consent in advance.
Section 19(a) of the Investment Company Act requires closed-end funds to provide a written statement accompanying any distribution from a source other than the fund's net income.
"This is a good reminder that fund sponsors must deliver such a notice," says Cipperman. "The issue is whether getting the consents is worth the aggravation instead of just sending a piece of paper."
Check out SIFMA Launches Investor First Initiative; CEO Gregg Says SEC Should Go First on Fiduciary on ThinkAdvisor.


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HearPeers Community
Members of HearPeers also have the opportunity to share pictures and videos. They can write their own blogs and chat live with other MED−EL implant users from around the world. The HearPeers forum is an excellent place to meet implant users, exchange experiences and learn how to make the most out of your cochlear implant journey.
The first click connects you to the social networks. The second click enables you to recommend the page. This process ensures that without your approval, data will not be transferred to the social networks.


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what we do.
we work with you to:
unlock your brand story
We'd love to help develop your brand identity. From the humble logomark, full blown
brand toolkits and style guides - all underpinned by the strategic thinking to effective
brand positioning.
reach your audience
Through audience research, development of engagement and social media strategies
and creative campaigns.
engage your audience
We design and develop websites, mobile, tablet and social media apps as well as
animation and motion graphics.
communicate with your audience
We love pushing the boundaries but we're also design purists at heart. We're keen
designers of stationery, posters, annual reports and info graphics. We also love a
chance to let loose with some quirky, weird, wild or just plain handsome illustration.


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The Second Great Migration
The Migration Numbers
Out of the Rural South
Into the North and West
A Diversity of Migrants
A New Life
Conflicts and Mobilization
From Country to Inner City
View all texts
The Second Great Migration, 1940-70
Thomas C. Holt, University of Chicago. With the assistance of Molly Hudgens, University of Chicago
Black Urban and Rural Population 1940-50 (table)
United States Census (Washington D.C.)
Negro Population in Urban Areas, By States, 1870-1950 (table)
Population Redistribution and Economic Growth: United States, 1870-1950
Simon Smith Kuznets
American Philosophical Society (Philadelphia, 1957-64)
Negro Population in Rural Areas, By States, 1870-1950 (table)
Population Redistribution and Economic Growth: United States, 1870-1950
Simon Smith Kuznets
American Philosophical Society (Philadelphia, 1957-64)
Principal States of Origin of the Migrants 1910-1950 (table)
Estimated Net Intercensal Migration of Nonwhite population by state, region, and division, 1930-1970 (table)
The Negro Leaves the South
from Demography, vol. 1, no. 1 (1964)
C. Horace Hamilton
Postwar Problems of Migration
Ira De. A. Reid
Milbank Memorial Fund (New York, 1947)
Chapter III - "The Search For Housing"
Some Aspects of the Migration of the Negro to the San Francisco Bay Area Since 1940
Edward Everett France
R & E Research Associates (San Francisco, 1974)
"Black Migration"
The Second Gold Rush: Oakland and the East Bay in World War II
Marilynn S. Johnson
University of California Press (Berkeley, 1993)
"African American Militancy in the World War II South: Another Perspective"
Remaking Dixie: The Impact of World War II on the American South
Harvard Sitkoff
University Press of Mississippi
"Juanita Tucker"
Bridges of Memory: Chicago's First Wave of Black Migration
Timuel Black
Northwestern University Press (Evanston, IL, 2003)
"Alvin 'Al' Boutte: Businessman and Banker"
Bridges of Memory: Chicago's First Wave of Black Migration
Timuel D. Black
Northwestern University Press (Evanston, IL, 2003)
Net Black Migration to Selected Cities 1910-30 and 1940-50 (table)
Effects of Migration on the Educational Levels of the Black Resident Population at the Origin and Destination, 1955-1960 and 1965-1970
from Demography, vol. 15, no. 1 (February 1978)
Eui-Hang Shin
Chapter 7 - "The Plight of Negro Workers"
AlabamaNorth: African-American Migrants, Community and Working-Class Activism in Cleveland, 1915-1945
Kimberley L. Phillips
University of Illinois Press
Migration Status of Black Population of the South 1940-70 (table)
United States Census (Washington D.C.)
The People of Chicago Five Year Report, 1947-1951, of the Chicago Commission on Human Resources
Mayor's Commissionn on Human Resources
Commission on Human Resources (Chicago, 1953?)
From Mississippi to Milwaukee: a Case Study of the Southern Black Migration to Milwaukee, 1940-1970
from The Journal of Negro History, vol. 83, no. 4 (August 1998)
Paul Geib
Chapter 5 - "We Shall Not Be Moved"
Race Relations in Wartime Detroit: The Sojourner Truth Housing Controversy, 1942
Dominic J. Capeci, Jr.
Temple University Press (Philadelphia, PA, 1984)
Chapter 8 - "Ghettos and the Lack of Them: Southern Migrants in the Midwest"
The Dispossessed: America's Underclasses from the Civil War to the Present
Jacqueline Jones
Basic Books (New York, 1992)
Chapter 10 - "Newcomers"
Pioneer Urbanites: A Social and Cultural History of Black San Francisco,"
Douglas Henry Daniels
Temple University Press (Philadelphia, 1980)
"In the Interest of All Races: African Americans and Interracial Cooperation in Los Angeles during and After World War II"
Seeking El Dorado: African Americans in California
Kevin Allen Leonard
Wartime Fair Employment Practice Committees: The Governor's Committee and the First FEPC in New York City, 1941-43
from Afro-Americans in New York Life and History, vol. 9, no. 2 (July 1985)
Dominic J. Capeci
Race, Jobs, and the War: The FEPC in the Widwest, 1941-46
Andrew Edmund Kersten
University of Illinois Press
Chapter 2 - "An Era of Hidden Violence"
Making the Second Ghetto: Race and Housing in Chicago, 1940-1960
Arnold Hirsch
Cambridge University Press
Chapter 8 - "Detroit Riots 1943"
Indignant Heart: A Black Worker's Journal
Charles Denby
South End Press
Chapter 4 - "The Meanest and Dirtiest Jobs"
The Origins of the Urban Crisis: Race and Inequality in Postwar Detroit
Thomas Sugrue
Princeton University Press (Princeton, 1996)
Public Housing, Isolation, and the Underclass: Philadelphia's Richard Allen Homes
from Journal of Urban History, vol. 17, no. 3 (May 1991)
Edward K. Muller (with John A. Bauman and Norman P. Hummon)
Demographic Change and Racial Ghettos: The Crisis, vol. 44
from Journal of Urban Law
Herbert Hill
The Great Migration and Changes in the Northern Black Family, 1940 to 1990
from Social Forces, vol. 75, no. 4 (June 1997)
Stewart E. Tolnay
Chapter 11 - "The Sixties: A Decade of Social Change"
Black Migration in America: A Social Demographic History
Daniel M. Johnson and Rex R. Campbell
Duke University Press (Durham, 1981)
The Migration Numbers
Out of the Rural South
Into the North and West
A Diversity of Migrants
A New Life
Conflicts and Mobilization
From Country to Inner City
View all texts
Privacy Policy
Rules & Regulations
Using the Internet
Website Terms & Conditions
© The New York Public Library, 2005.


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This my first attempt at creating a Poll.
The Fourth Column
BibleWorks Manuscript Project
CNTTS NT Critical Apparatus
New Greek NT Texts
Verse Tab
The Moody Atlas
Instant difference highlighting
ESV Study Bible (add on)
Increased HTML support
Stats tab updates & tracks with mouse
Tov-Polak update
Six hours of videos
Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine (add on)
Reformed Dogmatics (add on)
This my first attempt at creating a Poll.
Last edited by bkMitchell; 07-09-2011 at 03:48 PM.
You beat me to the punch, I was going to do this once it shipped. I will personally wait for my copy before I answer the poll.
Chris Sansom
M. Div. Concordia Seminary
I don't know how I could even choose 3. So many options...
Michael Hanel
PhD candidate Classics Univ. of Cincinnati
MDiv Concordia Seminary
MA Classics Washington University
Unofficial BibleWorks Blog
(1)The Manuscript project,
(2)CNTTS NT Critical Apparatus will also be cool.
(3)New Greek texts
(4)Instant difference highlighting (I think I will use it a lot!)
Last edited by bkMitchell; 07-09-2011 at 03:46 PM.
So, far there have been 9 voters and 8 of those selected the CNTTS NT Critical Apparatus as one of their favorite new features make it the most poplar new feature so far. The 2nd most popular feature is the fourth column, that kind of surprised me, but I guess one can't use the a lot of the other new features with out that column.
I think the 'Use' tab is a great addition, but, alas, that was not one of the choices.
I also would have voted for the "use" tab if it were on here, but the manuscript project and the cntts were also great additions.
Chris Sansom
M. Div. Concordia Seminary


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CCoL One Way Youth Band
Christian Podcasts
Inspirational Videos
Comedy Videos
Cute Videos
Today's Devotional
A Prayer for the Teachers, Mamas, and Anyone Who Wants to Give Up - Your Daily Prayer - September 22
We may never get recognition for the time we put in. But, there is One who sees us. And He matters most.
Top Music Videos
Christian News
The latest news and hot topics trending among Christian music, entertainment and faith life.
35 Celebrities Stepping Up During The Coronavirus Pandemic To Help Others
Just like the rest of us, celebrities are having to quarantine themselves during the coronavirus pandemic. For now there are no live concerts, sporting events, plays, movies, or parties. That hasn't stopped many celebrities from using technology and their social platform to support the community during this difficult time. Some have donated money, others are offering inspiring messages to encourage others. Here are 35 celebrities stepping up during the coronavirus pandemic to help others and keep spirits strong.


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The latest entry in Namco's Tales role-playing series has a name. That's good, because it's major headaches when a game does not have a name.
Dubbed Tales of Xillia, the game marks the 15th anniversary of the Tales series and is a "RPG of flickering conviction".
It features character designs by Kosuke Fujishima and Mutsumi Inomata.
The game follows the adventures of Shuto Matis, a medical student, and Mira, a woman able to control the four elements (earth, wind, fire and water).
Back in early August, concept art was shown for the then-untitled Tales of Xillia. Check out the link below for more Xillia footage of giant eyes and tiny noses.
Tales of Xillia [Namco]
The game will be released on the PS3 in Japan next year.


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"Like everything in South Carolina, we cook barbeque cantankerously. We smoke our meat with hundreds of opinions and often with a sense of injured pride."
That's the opening line to a new blog post on the state of barbecue in the U.S. Eatocracy.com, the food-related website from news network CNN, has been running the series of blog posts from the Southern Foodways Alliance in advance of this week's annual Southern Foodways Symposium, where the subject is (once again) barbecue.
I end up fielding a lot of heat and flash around N.C. barbecue, but our brethren in South Carolina are just a few miles down the road and have barbecue opinions that are just as heated. I myself have made many stops at Sweatman's Barbecue near Florence, strictly in the interest of paying due diligence to understanding that mustard-based sauce. As the SFA blog post says,"The whole state is a big messy spill of sauces."
I'm headed out on the road Tuesday, first to New York for the James Beard Foundation Leadership Awards, which I chair, and then on to Oxford, Miss., for the Southern Foodways Symposium. I'll tweet all the way and will bring back as much wisdom as I encounter.
In the meantime, give the Eatocracy.com post a read and see what you think. N.C. barbecue brings heated debate. Anyone want to join in with an opinion on S.C. 'cue?
Monday, October 15, 2012
Stop fussing about N.C. barbecue - fuss about S.C. instead
"Like everything in South Carolina, we cook barbeque cantankerously. We smoke our meat with hundreds of opinions and often with a sense of injured pride."
3 comments:
- Anonymous said...
I can live with the mustard based sauce, but the stuff they pass as BBQ hash at the Beacon is not fit for human consumption.
- October 15, 2012 at 10:21 AM
- Anonymous said...
I love vinegar based and tomato based BBQ sauce but don't offer me mustard sauce I would rather go hungry.
- October 15, 2012 at 10:34 AM
- Anonymous said...
I'm a western NC native who was, at first, skeptical of the South Carolina barbecue. But to my surprise, I enjoyed what I found in the Palmetto State. The mustard-based sauce is actually pretty good.
- October 15, 2012 at 10:48 AM


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The Atlanta rapper will make his second Columbus appearance this year.
Atlanta robo-rapper Future's major-label debut Pluto is one of the weirdest and most oddly satisfying collections of music I've heard this year, one that includes a string of bizarre gangster rap singles including "Tony Montana," "Magic," "Same Damn Time" and "Turn On the Lights." He performed at Long Street District back in August, a show that was originally scheduled for June (read our preview). Now he's coming back to headline Power 107.5's Jingle Jam at LC Pavilion on Dec. 22. Tickets cost $60 for the pit, $35 for the main floor and balcony, and they go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday.
We're certain this appearance will have Santa yelling "Freebandz!" from his sleigh this season.


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Ralph L. Neuzil 80, of Iowa City died Sunday, May 22, 2011, at Mercy Hospital due to complications of pneumonia.
Funeral services were held Friday, May 27, at St. Wenceslaus Catholic Church in Iowa City with the Reverend Michael Phillips officiating. Burial with military honors was held at St. Joseph Cemetery. In lieu of flowers a memorial fund has been established in Ralph's memory. Online condolences may be sent for his family through the web @ www.gayandciha.com
Harriett Jean Davis Tripp, 86, of Iowa City, passed away Thursday, May 12, 2011, at her daughter's home in the presence of her children. In accord with her wishes, cremation and a celebration of her life will be held at a later date. Her body has been donated to the University of Iowa. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to Iowa City Hospice, Planned Parenthood, or the University of Iowa College of Nursing.
Lewis "Vince" Clayton Vinson, 75, of Hiawatha, died Wednesday, May 18, 2011, at his home following a year long courageous battle with cancer. Memorial services were held May 22 at Teahen Funeral Home in Cedar Rapids by Chaplain Joseph Kane. Inurnment will be at Palo Cemetery, Palo, at a later date.
Vince is survived locally by his sister-in-law, Jean Bjornson of North Liberty.
The last two years Iowa's assistant basketball coach Kirk Speraw lived in Iowa City, the Hawkeyes were Big Ten co-champions (1978-79) and went to the Final Four (1979-80).
Kirk was a senior on the Big Ten championship team that went 20-8, 13-5 in the Big Ten. He was voted the most inspirational player on that squad.
Kirk was a graduate assistant on the Final Four team that was led by Ronnie Lester. The Hawks finished 23-8, 10-8 (fourth place) in the Big Ten.
Kirk is back as an assistant coach now after being head coach at Central Florida for the last 17 years.
City of West Branch seeking Police Chief www.westbranchiowa.org 6/29
Part-time home companion needed for elderly woman in rural Solon area. Light housework, some overnights. Call 521-9192 for more information or to set up an interview. 6/1
Story and Clarke upright piano for sale. Walnut satin finish. $900.00 excellent condition. 319-622-5142. 6/1
FW KENT PARK— The area once known as McClellan's Landing could be the site of multiple trailheads and year-round activities within the next 20-30 years, according to University of Iowa students Emily House, Eric Isaacs, Alicia Rosman and Erik Sampson. The foursome, master's degree candidates in the School of Urban and Regional Planning, have been working closely with the Sutliff Bridge Authority (SBA) and the Johnson County Conservation Board in an effort to develop a sustainable, practical plan for the Sutliff Bridge and its surrounding area.
SOLON– Solon Retirement Village will be hosting a groundbreaking ceremony for the public Sunday, June 5, at 12:30 p.m. for the new memory care and skilled therapy additions.
SOLON– Last fall, Chris Humrichouse got the seed of an idea stuck in her head.
She had read a newspaper article about several schools in Iowa City that had implemented garden projects in an effort to help provide fresh produce for their lunch programs and for others.
"I read this, and I thought, wouldn't it be great to start a community garden?" she said.
During preparation for an evening meal at the Solon United Methodist Church (SUMC), where Humrichouse serves as Associate Pastor, she learned she wasn't the only one who thought a community garden project would be great.
SOLON– An Iowa City woman died after being struck by a falling tree early Sunday, May 29, at Lake Macbride State Park near Solon. Jennifer Marie Lewis, 31, was alone in her tent on Macbride's south side campground during a thunderstorm with heavy rain and wind just after 9 a.m., according to information from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
SOLON– The committee raising funds for the Solon Outdoor Events Center will kick-off a renewed effort Thursday, June 9, at Jo's Roadhouse at 7 p.m. A short fundraising program presentation for the public will take place at 7:30 p.m. Giveaways and a silent auction of one item (a complete Solon Spartan football uniform with helmet, jersey and pants) will also be held. Former Solon and current Iowa football standout James Morris will speak, along with Solon Superintendent Sam Miller. Miller and project fundraiser Steve Duncan will speak about the importance of the project.


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200L Solar Geyser Systems. Thermosiphon
The transfer between tank and collector is governed by gravity (hot water density is lower than cold water density). Instead of a pump, the pressure differential between hot and cold is used as propulsion energy. This is the "thermosiphon principle". In order to operate, the collector (heat generator) must be located below the tank (heat consumer).The heat transfer medium is heated inside the solar collector. The hot liquid in the collector below is lighter than the cold liquid in the tank above the collector. As soon as the lighter hot liquid rises, gravity circulation starts.Inside the cylinder, the heated medium transfers its heat to the stored domestic hot water and then, once cooled, falls back to the lowest point in the collector circuit.
Solar Corporation Installation Link
Please see our special offer on supply and installation of the 200L Direct Frost Resistant Solar Geyser Systems.
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Crime & Thrillers
'Utterly mesmerising.' Deborah Moggach
'Beautifully constructed.' Clare Mackintosh
'A scarily plausible story . . .' Guardian
The new novel from Sunday Times bestselling author of Apple Tree Yard
Platform Seven at 4am: Peterborough Railway Station is deserted. The man crossing the covered walkway on this freezing November morning is confident he's alone. As he sits on the metal bench at the far end of the platform it is clear his choice is strategic – he's as far away from the night staff as he can get.
What the man doesn't realise is that he has company. Lisa Evans knows what he has decided. She knows what he is about to do as she tries and fails to stop him walking to the platform edge.
Two deaths on Platform Seven. Two fatalities in eighteen months - surely they're connected?
No one is more desperate to understand what connects them than Lisa Evans herself. After all, she was the first of the two to die…
'Smart, sophisticated and suspenseful.' HARLAN COBEN
'Sleek, cunning and breakneck.' MEGAN ABBOTT
'Thriller writing at its absolute best.' JEFFREY DEAVER
'Top-tier.' New York Times
From the top ten bestselling author of The Expats: Kate Moore is back in a pulse-pounding thriller which takes place over the course of one nail-biting day.
Kate Moore – a mother with an interesting past – is living the quiet life in another European city, or trying to. On her way to drop her children off at school in the city centre, the cafes and streets of Paris start to come alive around her. Kate's husband Dex, meanwhile, charged with finding a particular present for their son's birthday, is struggling to focus on the job in hand as a financial matter at work seems to be playing on his mind. As worrying reports begin to circulate from key locations around the city, and the sound of wailing sirens becomes increasingly hard to ignore, could their day and, indeed, their lives be about to change forever?
A Dark Corner9780571246557Paperback
A Helping Hand9780571244232Paperback
A Spring of Love9780571244249Paperback
An Evil Eye9780571239870Paperback
City Without Stars9780571338337Paperback
Dr Berlin9780571251667Paperback
Fever City9780571323845Paperback
Making Enemies9780571251575Paperback
Secret Kingdom9780571251650Paperback
Seventy Times Seven9780571290628Paperback
Sheep's Clothing9780571246489Paperback
The Baklava Club9780571239962Paperback
The Bellini Card9780571239924Paperback
The Janissary Tree9780571240326Paperback
The Pocket Wife9780571321889Paperback
The Snake Stone9780571240340Paperback
The Snake Stone9780571229253Paperback
White Death9780571237135Paperback
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10 technology hallmarks for every campus
10 technology hallmarks for every campus
1. High-speed wireless broadband.
According to the Center for Digital Education's recent "2013 Yearbook: Technology Innovation in Education," over 80 percent of education institutions surveyed said that wireless broadband was their "top priority for IT investment."
2. 24/7 IT support.
We have 24/7 support for emergencies and much of our staff, just like at a hospital, are on call. That's not a perk for the campus, it's a necessity.
3. The cloud.
The cloud can also: acquire and implement the latest software and application updates; streamline enrollment and admissions processes; and turn to subscriptions that are scalable and provide options, says Edudemic.
4. Digital textbooks.
Planning for digital textbooks means not only boosting mobile device capabilities on campus, but helping faculty learn to implement digital resources into their course.
5. 21st Century PD for faculty and admin.
From offering a MOOC on classroom management online solutions, to hosting a PD session on Twitter, campus admin should offer multiple options for PD delivery, just like how faculty should offer students multiple options for learning–there's no better way to teach something than to model it first!
6. MOOCs.
[Read: "3 pros and 3 cons of MOOCs."]
7. Online course management system.
From sending in-class emails to checking grades, course management systems, like Blackboard, offer faculty and students a fairly intuitive way to manage courses more efficiently.
8. Big Data…
Future-proofing universities are beginning to deploy storage solutions to help manage the unstructured data in physical, virtual and cloud environments. More modern storage solutions are also open source for a high learning curve but low cost.
precautions can range from scanning existing databases on the university's servers to determine where personal information is located and then, depending on the database, destroy the personal information or add more digital security; as well as put cybersecurity systems through a series of penetration tests to highlight security shortcomings.
[Read: "University data breach prompts 'top-to-bottom' IT review."]
10. Social media done well.
of the major ways campuses use social media well is by serving up both "cake" and "broccoli," or balancing the content that is important and good for the school (broccoli) and the content that is fun and delicious (cake). "If you share enough cake, your audience will consume the occasional broccoli," she advises.


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Invite Freelancer to Project
You don't seem to have an active project at the moment. Why not post a project now? It's free!Post a Project
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We at "Kaluras Technologies" has vast experience and have developed and implemented major projects in and around India. These projects only amplify the depth our skills set and the niche we have carved our for ourselves. Quality being the prime focus has helped customers to look at us as their partners in development rather then more software developers. "Kaluras Technologies" offer a wide spectrum of services to suit every need and requirement. From website designing to software development, web consultation. With a motto to serve our clients, we offer cost-effective & requirement oriented services. We offer following Services: · Offshore Development · Software Development · Call Center Application · Hospital Management System · Active X control · Application Development · E-commerce · Logos, Business Cards, Letter Heads & Brochures · Website Design & Development · Banner Ad Design (HTML and Flash Banners) · Annual Maintenance · Multi-media Presentations & Flash Animation · COM/DCOM · Mailing System · Chat Internet/Intranet · Typesetting · Electronic data processing · Image Scanning/processing · Page Scanning and Composing · Core data entry · Designing · PDF Conversion · HTML/XML Tagging For reference check out following: [login to view URL] (Portal from India) [login to view URL] (website from India) [login to view URL] (Website from India) [login to view URL] (Portal from USA) [login to view URL] (Portal from USA) [login to view URL] (Portal from USA) [login to view URL] (Website from USA) [login to view URL] (Website from USA) [login to view URL] (Portal from USA) Why Outsource to India? Indian technical and business skills are very demanding worldwide and have become the outsourcing benchmark that all other countries aspire to. Technical staffs are very experienced, highly skilled and well paid by Indian standards. Yet rates are extremely competitive compared to the International Standard. Communication is easy as everyone speaks excellent English and management very professional. In addition, they work a 6-day week, which makes them 20% more productive than countries with a 5-day working week. We're here to meet you at the highest point of your need. That's our agenda, plain and simple. Jai Singh Kalura Kaluras technologies
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While you may have to wait a while to find out who the antagonist is in J.J. Abrams' upcoming Star Trek sequel, Star Trek the video game has put its villains front and center. The Gorn, a lizard-like race of alien warriors Hell-bent on conquering the galaxy, will terrorize Captain James T. Kirk and Mr. Spock in the Paramount Pictures and Namco Bandai game. The cast of Star Trek, including Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Simon Pegg, Karl Urban, John Cho and Anton Yelchin will lend their voices to the game. The standalone co-op is based on Abrams' original Star Trek and continues the adventures of the iconic heroes. Players will control Kirk and Spock as they traverse across unexplored planets and alien battleships in an attempt to stop the Gorn in an original story written by BAFTA award-winner, Marianne Krawczyk (God of War) with Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman. Plenty of new images and concept art await you, along with the fully detailed press release, after the jump. As this announcement was made as part of the ongoing Electronic Entertainment Expo, catch up on all of our previous coverage of E3 here.
Check out the full press release below, followed by new images and concept art from the Star Trek video game, coming to consoles early 2013. If you missed the game trailer, we've posted that below as well:
LOS ANGELES, CA (June 5, 2012) – Paramount Pictures and leading video game publisher and developer NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. today gave fans the first look at the key villain to be featured in the upcoming Star Trek™ video game inspired by J.J. Abrams' Star Trek (2009) film reboot. The announcement made at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), revealed that a legendary lizard-like race known in Trek lore as "The Gorn" will play the destructive and villainous role in the video game releasing in early 2013. The co-op game is based on a standalone storyline that continues the adventure of iconic characters Captain James T. Kirk and Mr. Spock as they work together to stop the Gorn, an enemy race bent on conquering the galaxy.
"The Gorn are among the most iconic villians in the Star Trekuniverse and their role in this game certainly lives up to that persona ," said Brian Miller, Senior Vice President at Paramount Pictures and lead game producer. "Kirk and Spock find themselves in an incredibly challenging amount of mayhem as they confront the Gorn throughout the game."
More than just lizard-skinned foes, the Gorn are a blood-thirsty race determined to conquer the galaxy. A true military dictatorship, the Gorn are made up of billions of self-sacrificing warriors across thousands of colonies, each focused on the conquest of alien races. By utilizing their chaos-causing infectious venom, the Gorn seed mayhem and destruction as they destroy populations and deplete planets of their resources.
"Great villains give our favorite characters a chance to become heroes in the process of attempting to eliminate a powerful threat, and Star Trek fans have been eagerly anticipating the moment when the antagonists of the game would be revealed," said Carlson Choi, VP of Marketing at NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. "This is one of those moments and we couldn't be more excited to give gamers a glimpse at the challenges that lie ahead for Kirk and Spock."
The Gorn range in size and abilities, infecting their foes with venom that can poison, cause hallucinations, and even kill. From the smaller infantry Gorn Rushers, to the larger Gorn Warriors and the massive Gorn Brutes, the Gorn provides a serious direct threat, while the wall-climbing Gorn females showcase the cunning for which this race is feared. Technologically capable and possessing the antithesis of Federation ideals, the Gorn pose a devastating threat to Starfleet, the Enterprise, and its crew.
With a storyline occurring after the events of J.J. Abram's 2009 Star Trek reboot, the Star Trek video game puts players in the shoes of seminal heroes Captain James T. Kirk and Mr. Spock, inviting them to work together to take on the ferocious Gorn in this epic action adventure. Built from the ground up as the ultimate co-op experience, players are set on a journey of immense proportions across unexplored planets and enemy battleships with the latest 23rd century weapons and gear. Kirk and Spock's complementary personalities result in the most fully realized and varied co-op experience for this console generation.


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Sacred Hearts
A Novel
Hardcover, 415 pages, Random House Inc, List Price: $25 |purchase
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Book Summary
Condemned by sixteenth-century demands for lucrative dowries in order to marry, young Serafina is ripped from an illicit love affair and confined in an Italian convent, a situation against which she passionately rebels and reminds the convent's doctor of her own unhappy early years.
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Note: Book excerpts are provided by the publisher and may contain language some find offensive.
Excerpt: Sacred Hearts
Chapter One
Before the screaming starts, the night silence of the convent is already alive with its own particular sounds.
In a downstairs cell, Suora Ysbeta's lapdog, swaddled like a baby in satin cloth, is hunting in its dreams, muzzled grunts and growls marking the pleasure of each rabbit cornered. Ysbeta herself is also busy with the chase, her silver tray doubling as a mirror, her right hand poised as she closes a pair of tweezers over a stubborn white hair on her chin. She pulls sharply, the sting and the satisfaction of the release in the same short aah of breath.
Across the courtyard two young women, plump and soft-cheeked as children, lie together on a single pallet, entwined like kindling twigs, their faces so close they seem almost to be exchanging breaths, the one inhaling as the other lets go: in, out, in, out. There is a slight sweetness to the air—angelica, perhaps, or sweet mint—as if they have both eaten the same sugared cake or drunk from the same spiced wine cup. Whatever they have imbibed, it has left them both sleeping soundly, their contentment a low hum of pleasure in the room.
Suora Benedicta, meanwhile, can barely contain herself, there is so much music inside her head. Tonight it is a setting of the Gradual for the Feast of the Epiphany, the different voices like colored tapestry threads weaving in and over one another. Sometimes they move so fast she can barely chalk them down, this stream of white notes on her slate blackboard. There are nights when she doesn't seem to sleep at all, or when the voices are so insistent she is sure she must be singing out loud with them. Still, no one admonishes her the next day, or wakes her if she slips into a sudden nap in the refectory. Her compositions bring honor and benefactors to the convent, and so her eccentricities are overlooked.
In contrast, young Suora Perseveranza is in thrall to the music of suffering. A single tallow candle spits shadows across her cell. Her shift is so thin she can feel the winter damp as she leans back against the stone wall. She pulls the cloth up over her calves and thighs, then more carefully across her stomach, letting out a series of fluttering moans as the material sticks and catches on the open wounds underneath. She stops, breathing fast once or twice to still herself, then tugs harder where she meets resistance, until the half-formed skin tears and lifts off with the cloth. The candlelight reveals a leather belt nipped around her waist, a series of short nails on the inside, a few so deeply embedded in the flesh beneath that all that can be seen are the crusted swollen wounds where leather and skin have fused together. Slowly, deliberately, she presses on one of the studs. Her hand jumps back involuntarily, a cry bursting out of her, but there is an exhilaration to the sound, a challenge to herself as her fingers go back again.
She keeps her gaze fixed on the wall ahead, where the guttering light picks out a carved wooden crucifix: Christ, young, alive, His muscles running through the grain as His body strains forward against the nails, His face etched with sorrow. She stares at Him, her own body trembling, tears wet on her cheeks, her eyes bright. Wood, iron, leather, flesh. Her world is contained in this moment. She is within His suffering; He is within hers. She is not alone. Pain has become pleasure. She presses the stud again and her breath comes out in a long satisfying growl, almost an animal sound, consumed and consuming.
In the next-door cell, Suora Umiliana's fingers pause briefly over her chattering rosary beads. The sound of the young sister's devotion is like the taste of honey in her mouth. When she was younger she too had sought God through open wounds, but now as novice mistress it is her duty to put the spiritual well-being of others before her own. She bows her head and returns to her beads.
in her cell above the infirmary, Suora Zuana, Santa Caterina's dispensary mistress, is busy with her own kind of prayer. She sits bent over Brunfels's great book of herbs, her forehead creased in concentration. Next to her is a recently finished sketch of a geranium plant, the leaves of which have proved effective at stanching cuts and flesh wounds—one of the younger nuns has started passing clots of blood, and she is searching for a compound to stop a wound she cannot see.
Perseveranza's moans echo along the upper cloister corridor. Last summer, when the heat brought the beginnings of infection to the wounds and those who sat next to the young nun in chapel complained about the smell, the abbess had sent her to the dispensary for treatment. Zuana had washed and dressed the angry lesions as best she could and given her ointment to reduce the swelling. There is nothing more she can do. While it is possible that Perseveranza might eventually poison herself with some deeper infection, she is healthy enough otherwise, and from what Zuana knows of the way the body works she doesn't think this will happen. The world is full of stories of men and women who live with such mutilations for years, and while Perseveranza might talk fondly enough of death, it is clear that she gains too much joy from her suffering to want to end it prematurely.
Zuana herself doesn't share this passion for self-mortification. Before she came to the convent she had lived for many years as the only child of a professor of medicine. His very reason for being alive had been to explore the power of nature to heal the body, and she cannot remember a moment in her life when she didn't share his fervor. She would have made a fine doctor or teacher like him, had such a thing been possible. As it is, she was fortunate that after his death his name and his estate were good enough to buy her a cell in the convent of Santa Caterina, where so many noblewomen of Ferrara find space to pursue their own ways to live inside God's protection.
Still, any convent, however well adjusted, trembles a little when it takes in one who really does not want to be there.
zuana looks up from her table. The sobbing coming from the recently arrived novice's cell is now too loud to be ignored. What started as ordinary tears has grown into angry howls. As dispensary mistress it is Zuana's job, should things become difficult, to settle any newcomer by means of a sleeping potion. She turns over the hourglass. The draft is already mixed and ready in the dispensary. The only question is how long she should wait.
It is a delicate business, judging the depth of a novice's distress. A certain level of upset is only natural: once the feasting is over and the family has left, the great doors bolted behind them, even the most devout of young women can suffer a rush of panic when faced with the solitude and silence of the closed cell.
Those with relatives inside are the easiest to settle. Most of them have cut their teeth on convent cakes and biscuits, so pampered and fussed over through years of visiting that the cloister is already a second home. If—as it might—the day itself unleashes a flurry of exhausted tears, there is always an aunt, sister, or cousin on hand to cajole or comfort them.
For others, who might have harbored dreams of a more flesh-and-blood bridegroom or left a favorite brother or doting mother, the tears are as much a mourning for the past as fear of the future. The sisters in charge treat them gently as they clamber out of dresses and petticoats, shivering from nerves rather than cold, their naked arms raised high in the air in readiness for the shift. But all the care in the world cannot disguise the loss of freedom, and though some might later substitute silk for serge (such fashionable transgressions are ignored rather than allowed), that first night girls with soft skin and no proclivity for penance can be driven mad by the itch and the scratch. These tears have an edge of self-pity to them, and it is better to cry them now, for they can become a slow poison if left to fester.
Eventually the storm will blow itself out and the convent return to sleep. The watch sister will patrol the corridors, keeping tally of the time until Matins, some two hours after midnight, at which point she will pass through the great cloister in the dark, knocking on each door in turn but missing that of the latest arrival. It is a custom in Santa Caterina to allow the newcomer to spend her first night undisturbed, so the next day will find her refreshed and better prepared to enter her new life.
Tonight, however, no one will do much sleeping.
In the bottom of the hourglass the hill of sand is almost complete, and the wailing has grown so violent that Zuana feels it in her stomach as well as her head—as if a wayward troop of devils has forced its way inside the girl's cell and is even now winding her intestines on a spit. In their dormitory, the young boarders will be waking in terror. The hours between Compline and Matins mark the longest sleep of the night, and any disturbance now will make the convent bleary-eyed and foul-tempered tomorrow. In between the screams, Zuana registers a cracked voice rising up in tuneless song from the infirmary. Night fevers conjure up all manner of visions among the ill, not all of them holy, and it will not help to have the crazed and the sickly joining in the chorus.
Zuana leaves her cell swiftly, her feet knowing the way better than her eyes. As she moves down the stairs into the main cloister and enters the great courtyard, she is held for a second, as she often is, by its sheer beauty. From the moment she first stood here, sixteen years ago, the walls around threatening to crush her, it has offered a space for peace and dreams. By day the air is so still it seems as if time itself has stopped, while in the dark you can almost hear the rush of angels' wings behind you. Not tonight, though. Tonight the stone well in the middle looms up like a gray ship in a sea of black, the sound of the girl's sobbing a wild wind echoing around it. It reminds her of the story her father used to tell of the time he sailed to the East Indies to collect plant specimens and how they found a merchant boat abandoned in steamy waters, the only sign of life the screeching of a starving parrot left on board. "Just imagine, carissima. If only we could have understood that bird's language, what secrets might it have revealed?"
Unlike him, Zuana has never seen the ocean, and the only siren voices she knows are those of soaring sopranos in chapel or wailing women in the night. Or the yelping of noisy dogs—like the one now yapping in Suora Ysbeta's cell, a small matted ball of hair and bad smells with teeth sharp enough to bite through its night muzzle and join in the drama. Yes, it is time for the sleeping draft.
The air in the infirmary is thick with tallow-candle smoke and the rosemary fumigant that she keeps burning constantly to counteract the stench of illness. She passes the young choir sister crippled by her bleeding insides, her body curled in over itself, eyes tight shut in a way that speaks of prayer rather than sleep. In the remaining beds the other sisters are as old as they are ill, their lungs filled with winter damp, so they bubble and rasp as they breathe. Most of them are deaf to anything but the voices of angels, though not above competing as to whose choir is the sweetest.
"Oh, sweet Jesus! It is coming. Save us all."
While Suora Clementia's ears are still sharp enough to make out the pad of a cat's paw, her mind is so clouded that she might read it as the footfall of the devil's messenger or the first sign of the Second Coming.
"Hear the screaming! Hear the screaming!" The old woman is bolt upright in the last bed, her arms flapping as if to beat off some invisible attack. "The graves are opening. We will all be consumed."
Zuana catches her hands and pulls them down onto the sheets, holding them still while she waits for the nun to register her presence. In the Great Silence that runs from Compline until daybreak, the ill and the mad will be forgiven for breaking the rule but others risk grave penance for any squandered speech.
Across the courtyard another howl rises up, followed by a crash and a splintering of wood. Zuana pushes the old nun gently back down toward the bed, settling her as best she can. The tang of fresh urine lifts off the sheet. It can wait until morning. The servant sisters will be gentler if they have had some sleep.
Taking the night-light, she moves swiftly into the dispensary, which lies behind a door at the far end of the infirmary. On the wall in front of her, pots, vials, and bottles dance in rhythm to the flickering flame. She knows each and every one of them; this room is her home, more familiar to her even than her cell. She takes a glass vial from a drawer and, after a second's hesitation, reaches for a bottle from the second shelf, uncorks it, and adds some further drops of syrup. Any novice who breaks furniture as well as silence will need a strong soporific.


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Deck the walls!
Celebs like Alessandra Ambrosio and Giuliana Rancic have been spotted around town in Whitney Port's very own Whitney Eve designs, and now Port is taking things outside the closet and straight to the walls!
The City alum turned fashion designer has tapped her Whitney Eve design assistant Lisa Stannard to create special art prints, 12 in all, inspired by the label's colorful and whimsical prints.
"A huge part of the Whitney Eve design process is creating our own exclusive print designs each season," Port, 26, said on her blog January 13. "We work long and hard to make our prints beautiful and unique. I am excited to tell you that you can now buy these unique prints for your own home too!"
The art varies from the bold, aztec colors in her Fall 2011 clothing collection to the soft, pastel florals that we'll see pop up in her Spring 2012 line.
The illustrations can be ordered as art prints in three sizes (8×11, 11×16 and 16×23) or as poster prints in two sizes (8×11 and 11×16) and range in price from $13 to $92.
And to offset the shipping cost (Stannard's business is located in the UK), fans can score 30 percent off their Whitney Eve print purchases through the end of January. So head over to lisastannardshop.com to snag yours now!
For access to all our exclusive celebrity videos and interviews – Subscribe on YouTube!


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Hi all.
I've booked into Algonquin Provincial Park for the wolf howl. Maybe I'll get lucky this year. They haven't had a howl for a few years as the animals are not settled enough.
I will be at the Canisbay campgrounds, spot 87, on August 25 and following two days. If anyone is there at the time, stop by for a 'pop' and say hi.


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How Police Body Cameras Were Designed to Get Cops Off the Hook
From GIZMODO
In the wake of protests over police violence against black men, many civil rights activists are calling for a high-tech solution: strapping wearable body cameras to cops. The idea is to hold police accountable for unnecessary violence. But the history of police body cams reveals that the devices have often had the opposite effect.
On the afternoon of March 1st, a band of Los Angeles Police shot a homeless man. Video of the incident was captured by both a witness armed with a cell phone, and by body cameras strapped to the officers. Despite the evidence, what actually happened on Skid Row before police shot Charly Keunang remains a matter of dispute. How it went down depends on who you ask — and, more importantly, on whose video you're watching.
The civilian shot video from a short distance away, and the footage shows officers circling Keunang before a physical struggle erupts. Keunang is thrown to the ground. Officers struggle to contain him. He's resisting but subdued. He's not going anywhere but he hasn't been cuffed. Then after some yelling, three officers open fire. (more…)


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Can You Believe The Woman Who Helped Keep Jaycee Dugard Prisoner For 18 Years Is Crying Because Jaycee Hasn't Visited Her In Jail?
Nancy and Philip Garrido were indicted by a grand jury this week for the kidnapping and rape of Jaycee Dugard. In a truly disturbing twist, Nancy's attorney admits that the woman — who helped her husband keep Jaycee a prisoner for 18 years — is devastated because Jaycee and her daughters haven't visited her in prison.
HollyMoms, brace yourself for an extremely disturbing update on Phillip and Nancy Garrido. You'll remember them as the couple that allegedly held Jaycee Dugard prisoner in their Antioch, Calif., backyard for 18 years before authorities discovered and rescued her in August 2009. Now a grand jury has indicted the couple on kidnapping and rape charges. That's the good news. The disgusting part is that Nancy's been crying her eyes out over the fact that neither Jaycee nor her two daughters (who were fathered by Nancy's husband, Philip, a registered sex offender) have come to visit her in jail, according to her attorney Stephen Tapson. "They're running out my Kleenex budget. She wants to see the kids and Jaycee," reveals Tapson.
Of course 30-year-old Jaycee, who is now in the process of trying to regain some sense of normalcy for her and her girls after such a horrific ordeal, has absolutely no interest in seeing her former abuser or his wife ever again. And who can blame her? For her own peace of mind and safety, prosecutors are refusing to tell the Garridos where Jaycee and her girls are currently residing. Jaycee (who the Garridos kidnapped when she was just 11) is making positive progress thanks to therapy sessions and is interested in starting a foundation for other victimized children. "She has a talent for it and she wants to pursue it," says family spokesperson Nancy Seltzer.
An arraignment is in the works, according to Tapson, who was surprised that his client was indicted. "I had assumed they weren't going to. I'm surprised they waited so long," he says adding that he is hoping that if Nancy pleads guilty she will get a softer sentence than life without parole. Personally, we think that for her part in this whole thing, she deserves to be locked up and they should throw away the key! What do you think?


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On raising a son on the autism spectrum, progressive politics, pop culture, and coffee addiction.
Friday, October 08, 2010
Full spectrum boy
But lately I've been thinking about the other spectrums that seem to come along with autism. I was talking not long ago to Bud's former teacher, the incomparable Ms. Walker, who told me that she often thought about working with children with autism by looking at the number line that runs across the wall of her classroom. When she works with a child with, say, dyslexia, she can usually predict that on any given day, that child is going to walk into her room with a level of challenge that falls within a particular range on her imaginary number line - let's say, somewhere between 40 and 60. But, she said, with Bud, she knew that on any given day, he might enter at any point on the number-line of challenge. One day, he might walk in at negative 150. The next, he might be at positive 125. Each day stood as a discrete point on the number line, seemingly unconnected to either the day that came before or the day that would follow. Her strategies for intervention also had to run a spectrum, she learned, because a strategy that was powerfully effective one day, might be woefully inadequate the next.
I thought about another kind of "autism spectrum" a couple of weeks ago, as we celebrated Bud's eleventh birthday. All day, I walked around with a single line from the Sting song "All Four Seasons" running through my head: "That's my baby. She can be all four seasons in one day..."
It wasn't until after I put Bud to bed that night that I had time to reflect on the day and on why that particular song kept occurring to me. I thought about the ever-changing seasons of Bud's behavior over the course of the day - a day that he'd been anticipating for months. Those seasons ran a full spectrum, cycling rapidly from sunny and bright, to stormy and imposing, to placid and serene, and back to glorious and sparkling.
I thought, also, about the seasons of life - the spectrum of stages we all go through - and the way that most of progress through those seasons in a linear way, embracing the one ahead of us as we let the one behind us fall away. But Bud does not seem to be progressing through the developmental stages in life in quite the same linear way. His development, it seems, is more fragmented, with different aspects of it moving at different paces, making him seem at once so innocent and childlike, so angsty and preteen, and so grown-up and mature.
I thought about his multi-stage, full spectrum development as I looked at his birthday presents - each of them treasured in its own way. Among them, I saw:
A Teletubbies board book, designed for chubby toddler hands;
Teletubbies colorforms, for ages 3 and up;
A DVD and a set of stuffed characters from the PBS preschool show Dinosaur Train;
Chapter books from the PBS Kids show Martha Speaks, geared to children in the early elementary grades;
An amazon.com gift card - just right to meet the independent spirit of the 'tween demographic in which he finds himself age-wise (and which he used to by another Teletubbies board book and two Caillou VHS tapes, which he doesn't watch, but which he needed to complete his collection);
A boombox with an iPod dock, probably a big seller with teenagers, which he uses to play his country music - most definitely popular among college students;
A set of DVDs from the first season of the National Geographic series Be the Creature, featuring the Kratt brothers, formerly of the PBS Kids show Zoboomafoo, and now in a series oriented to teens and adults;
A banjo, perfect for plucking out some homespun bluegrass - which, though certainly appropriate for all ages, may be most popular with the grandpa set.
He loves them all.
That's my baby. He can be all four seasons in one day.
13 comments:
- Niksmom said...
Aw, happy birthday to Bud! Hope it was a good one in spite of the rapid change of seasons. :-)
- October 08, 2010 9:23 PM
- Christa said...
Happy Birthday, Bud! We can't wait to hear about your adventures with the banjo (being a banjo-playing household ourselves.)
Ah, those developmental seasons. Ben's day yesterday included these cultural artifacts (all equally beloved): Harry Potter, Goodnight Gorilla, Batman, My Friends Tigger and Pooh.
- October 08, 2010 11:02 PM
- MOM-NOS said...
Christa, that's so funny - just this week Bud asked me where his copy of Goodnight Gorilla was. I haven't seen it in years.
I sometimes wonder if he'll always be like this with his interests - always adding on, but never subtracting.
- October 08, 2010 11:29 PM
Happy Birthday to you both. The number line and the seasons analogies are two perfect ways to describe the spectrum.
Just last week, the temp outside here was warm enough to require the air conditioning on, then cold enough to think about needing the heat. And it was the same outside as well :-)
- October 09, 2010 6:54 AM
- Lydia said...
When you mentioned spectrums related to autism, the one I first thought of was the anxiety spectrum. But then, I would...
I'm a LOT like Bud regarding the fragmented development. In my apartment you'll find Skippyjon Jones, American Girl dolls, puzzles, Martha Speaks on TV, both child and adult Bible studies... okay, looking around, I can't find much adult-like stuff, but does the fact that I live alone now count?
- October 09, 2010 7:51 AM
a very happy birthday to your incredible boy - all more beautiful for the seasons.
- October 09, 2010 9:56 AM
- Drama Mama said...
Happy Birthday, dearest Bud! Do you even know how long you've inspired me, dearest one?
I love this, MOM. I, too, think of my kid - and students - on a number line. Sometimes it's a blip, sometimes it's a rock and a roll between the numbers.
It's never dull.
I love his bday choices. He reminds me of someone else I know, who, the other day was flipping between Howard Zinn and her sister's slim volume of Pinkalicious, thumb serving as bookmark for each book.
- October 09, 2010 10:14 AM
- Dani G said...
Yes, I can completely relate to this. I think that's where so much stress comes from. I never really know what she's gonna be like or what to expect. In fact, she can have a great morning, a really rough and "off" afternoon and then back up and a great night. It's so variable.
It's like walking on eggshells sometimes.
- October 09, 2010 10:54 AM
- Professor Mother said...
Happy Birthday- to you and Bud! My husband always says how birthdays are also about becoming a parent- I was the one who GAVE birth.
I agree with Dani G- the changing temperatures is what leads to stress. If I could count on consistency, I think it might be easier...
so many shades- so many spectrums.
- October 09, 2010 9:10 PM
My son, age 7, has a lot of anxiety about giving up his kid stuff. He's already wanting to add but never subtract. We are still fairly new to the spectrum, so we are working on his anxiety in general but I worry I have a mini hoarder on my hands.
- October 09, 2010 9:17 PM
- KAL said...
Happy Birthday, Bud :) And to you, MOM!
- October 12, 2010 1:22 PM
- kim mccafferty said...
Happy Birthday to Bud, and what an insightful teacher!
- October 14, 2010 8:48 AM
Hi, I just found your blog recently. This post reminded me of some of the habits of my 5 and a half year old autistic daughter. She tends to prefer television geared toward pre-schoolers, though she likes being read to from books from a wide range of age-levels. (She can't really "read" for herself, at least not yet.) I do worry about age appropriateness. Maybe I shouldn't. I'm okay with her being a a year or two behind, but I fear that I'd have some trouble accepting her being stuck at a pre-school level at 10 or 11.
However, she has grown bored with some interests. She had been a fan of Winnie the Pooh, Leap Frog dvds, and other things. Very rarely does she express an interest in revisting these things. I say that with some regret because she recently passed out of a PBS Kids phase. My personal view is that PBS children's shows are profoundly overrated for their educational value; though I admit they are marginally educational than the Nick jr programming she prefers now.
- November 05, 2010 10:06 AM


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Associated article: Real-Time Stereoscopic Video Streaming
Tags: .NET Parallel
Published source code accompanying the article by Karen McMenemy and Stuart Ferguson in which they examine real-time virtual reality by showing you how to use DirectX and OpenGL. Also see RTVIDEO.ZIP.
Real-time Stereoscopic Video Streaming by Karen McMenemy and Stuart Ferguson Listing One class CVideoCamera { // video data grabber object class public: .. .. HRESULT Render(HWND, long, long); // render video into OpenGL window HRESULT InitDShowRenderer(long); // set up DirectShow to grab video HWND ...


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The Band Perry, Kenny Chesney, Eric Church and Carrie Underwood have been added as performers for the CMA Awards on Nov. 1.
The Band Perry is nominated for vocal group of the year, Chesney is nominated in the entertainer category and Church earned five nominations, including a male vocalist nod. Church's latest project, Chief, is nominated for album of the year while "Springsteen" will compete in the single, song and video categories.
Underwood, who will co-host the show with Brad Paisley, is nominated for female vocalist.
As previously announced, additional CMA Awards performers include Jason Aldean, Dierks Bentley, the Zac Brown Band, Luke Bryan, Kelly Clarkson, Miranda Lambert, Little Big Town and Paisley.
The awards show will be televised live from Nashville on ABC.